Stone ― who worked on presidential campaigns for Nixon, Ronald Reagan, Bob Dole and others ― took credit for Donald Trump’s presidential run and served as an informal adviser after he left Trump’s campaign in August 2015.

He repeatedly has said it was “a possibility” that he would be indicted in Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and possible Trump campaign collusion.

Kevin Lamarque / Reuters
Roger Stone, who has a long reputation as a GOP "dirty trickster," was arrested Friday morning on a seven-count indictment.

Stone has previously admitted to being in contact with Julian Assange of WikiLeaks during the Trump campaign.

The indictment alleges he spoke “to senior Trump Campaign officials” about WikiLeaks and “information it might have had that would be damaging” to the campaign of Trump’s Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, in the summer before the election.

Stone was “contacted by senior Trump Campaign officials to inquire about future releases” by WikiLeaks, according to the indictment, which refers to WikiLeaks as “Organization 1.”

Stone’s attorney, Grant Smith, said in a statement that “there was no Russian collusion” and that the charges were “a clear attempt at silencing Roger.”

NEW: Attorney for Roger Stone responds to indictment in Mueller probe on charges of obstruction, false statements, and witness tampering: "There was no Russian collusion, it's a clear attempt at silencing Roger…He will fight the charges." Via @ajdukakishttps://t.co/jxcqbhTlFLpic.twitter.com/OWWiVkSmxR

Stone has described his contact with the Russians ― who used the handle “Guccifer 2.0” ― as “benign.” He told The Washington Post that he met with a Russian national who wanted to sell Trump damaging information on Hillary Clinton for a sum of $2 million. The man had previously worked as an informant for the FBI, but told the Post that he was not working on the FBI’s behalf when he met with Stone in May 2016.

Stone’s indictment came after his associate Randy Credico, a radio show host, testified before the grand jury.

Stone, according to the indictment, “on multiple occasions” around Dec. 1, 2017, told Credico (“Person 2”) that he should “do a ‘Frank Pentangeli’” in his testimony before the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence “to avoid contradicting Stone’s testimony.”

It was a reference to the “Frankie Five Angels” character from “The Godather: Part II,” whom the indictment alleges Stone and Credico had previously discussed. In the film, the character testifies and “claims not to know critical information that he does in fact know,” the indictment recounts.